


Because The Future Exists.

by azuredeity



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst with a Happy Ending, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Reconciliation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:20:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26241814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/azuredeity/pseuds/azuredeity
Summary: Shu wanted to reach out to Nazuna again but he couldn't, since he fears the same thing that happened in the past might repeat again and he doesn't want that.So he finds himself struggling to even face him in the first place. Nazuna continues to wait for him to be ready, because he knew he also felt the same.(Or, Shu runs away from talking to Nazuna for the majority of the fic.)[Ensemble Stars Summer Santa 2020 for @/mahiruhiiragis]
Relationships: Itsuki Shuu & Nito Nazuna, Itsuki Shuu/Nito Nazuna
Comments: 4
Kudos: 19





	Because The Future Exists.

**Author's Note:**

> [Title is taken from 22/7's 未来があるから。The lyrics written in bold is the translation that you will find in the unofficial 22/7 wikia.]
> 
> Hello! It's my first time writing Valkyrie + Nazuna in general and I'm really sorry if they were OOC! 
> 
> I loved making this, even though I did procasinate while writing this, it was a pretty fun experience in the end.
> 
> So please enjoy! :D

**_What was the reason you opposed it?_ **

Sakura petals were falling down to the ground once more as it marked the end to another school year. The graduating third year students were outside of the building, meeting up with their parents, underclassmen and their fellow unit members so had finally graduated from Yumenosaki. Noises of tears, laughter and excitement filled the air since a new life for them had just begun. Shu on the other hand didn’t know what to feel about this. He had finally graduated, yes, but there was a part of him that still held onto the regrets of the past. Regrets that he should have let go long ago. A sigh left his mouth as he looked up to the cherry blossoms that were around him. The sight was pretty and he should be enjoying this, so why couldn’t he? Shu turned his back to see Mika right behind him smiling with tears in his eyes.  _ Ah.  _ It had just hit him that he will be leaving him here in Japan for quite a while since he’s going to be studying in France. The thought of that made him even more bitter.

“Oshi-san, do ya still have anythin’ else to do?” Mika asked, trying to hide his tears. Shu looked at him and frowned, he didn't want his doll to cry on this special day where he is supposed to be rejoicing. The pink haired male then looked up at the cherry blossoms once again, reminiscing on the events that happened a year ago.

_ The moment that the music stopped, he knew they were done for good.  _

_ Shu was speechless. He didn’t know what to do in this situation. Purple eyes just looked at the middle of the crowd, scared of their reactions to this live show. The two dolls that he worked so hard to make them perfect were also distraught at the sudden cut of the audio. Despite the fact that Shu told them not to sing, they still did. The moment that the two of them started singing, he realized how wrong he was. _

_ This moment right now, is probably the last time they will sing together. On stage, singing their broken hearts out for help. Shu looked at Nazuna who looked like he was about to cry. That expression of his will ruin the image that he had built for him but then again, who was he to control him? Deep inside he knew that he was also human yet, this human right in front of him sacrificed his free will to accommodate his artistic visions.  _

_ Right after they got backstage, Shu fell down to his knees. _

Mika noticed that Shu was spacing out once again. Sighing, he walked up to him and gave him a little poke, “It’s oshi-san’s special day today… Why are ya actin’ sad?” he said. For Shu, he honestly hated Mika speaking in this tone. He doesn’t need the concern, in fact, his doll should be thinking about himself right now because next school year, he will be alone. Shu looked at Mika for a quick second before turning his head around at the sound of Nazuna’s voice.

Nazuna looked happy, talking to the other members of Ra*bits who was celebrating his special day of his. The blond also went around talking to other third years. Shu honestly wished that he won’t come here to talk to him, he still isn’t ready to face him after all. Sure, they have performed together a couple of times during their third year. He tried his best not to run away while talking to him but now that they were about to part ways in the meantime, he couldn’t bring himself to talk to him. In his head, thoughts of the past lingered. Shu is afraid of having to deal with another loss again, so it was best to just watch from behind to see his former doll live his life as a human once again. Or, a rabbit that is trying his best to reclaim what he had lost in the past. The pink haired male turned around to face Mika, “Let us go now Kagehira. We still have a feast to attend to after this,” he said. The two of them started walking until they were stopped by someone. 

_ “Itsuki-chin!” _

Shu didn’t want to turn around, he doesn’t deserve this but yet, he still turned around. 

He saw Nazuna standing confidently with a smile. Oh how he wished he was that confident to see him off. If he was, he would have had a conversation with him a while ago. Shu tried to look at him in the eye, he really did try but he couldn’t. He was still clinging onto the past. In short, he was scared. Nazuna softly smiled at him and walked up to him, “Itsuki-chin, good luck,” he said. Shu watched him bow down and walk back to his unit, it looked like they were planning to celebrate their beloved nii-chan’s graduation. Mika grabbed his hand and held it tightly, dual colored eyes softly reassuring him that everything was alright.

“Kagehira…”

“Oshi-san, Nito-senpai has forgiven ya right?”

_ “Sometimes I wish I accepted his forgiveness sooner.” _

**_What was the reason you broke free? Was it because you’d be betrayed, but would get hurt easily?_ **

A week before he leaves for France, Shu decided to schedule his whole week to meet up with friends. He saved a day for the fellow oddballs, his former classmates and many more other people he wished to hang out with before he goes. However, there was one person he wanted to see before he left for France, Nazuna. 

He had his number and everything but he still couldn’t bring himself to properly talk to him, Shu was in distress, he almost grabbed the hammer to destroy his phone but was stopped by Mika. Thank god both of them lived in the same house. Mika was concerned for Shu, since he himself was actually trying his best to improve his relationship with Nazuna by meeting up with him regularly when they have the time. (Shu isn’t aware of this. He kept it a secret.) The pink haired male found himself once again wrapping himself with his blanket and talking to Madamosselle, it suddenly felt so nostalgic doing this. (He doesn’t know why himself.) 

Mika found Shu hiding behind his blanket as soon as he entered the room. He sighed in relief to see that he was still calm and still hadn't caused a wreck inside the house. Shu sensed that his fellow unit mate had entered the room and was walking towards him, so he decided to stand up from the corner to face Mika. “Kagehira, I thought I told you to leave me alone for a while,” he sternly said. 

The green haired male gulped at Shu’s voice, well it’s not his fault that he started getting more and more worried about his mentor. He just couldn’t resist checking on him, it was unusual for Shu to get overly worried about his relationship with a person, especially his relationship with Nazuna at this very moment. Mika recalled the things that his former unit mate wanted to say to his mentor, he knew that he wanted to reconnect with him in some way but he would also like to give Shu the space to think about it, he didn’t want to force his reconciliation onto him. A few moments of silence passed and the two of them were still standing right in front of each other, waiting for the other person to say something. Mika took a deep breath, “Oshi-san, we’re ya thinkin’ of seein’ Nazuna-nii before ya leave for France?” 

_ How in the hell Mika was able to guess it so spot on?  _ Shu thought. Dropping his blanket down to the floor, he quietly sighed, to show that he had finally accepted defeat and finally tell Mika about his true feelings. It was just about time that he properly communicated with him, after all they agreed to start opening up to each other, this should be the first. Taking a deep breath and mustering up the courage, he looked at Mika in the eye. “Do I have the right to talk to Nito again?” 

\---

_ Shu was once again brought back to that time. _

_ However, it wasn’t the time that Valkyrie fell, it was the time where they spent what was the last time they would feel happiness as a trio. Shu watched these happy memories unfold, seeing Mika trying to hide his gift for Nazuna and him being surprised when he discovered that he himself had intervened on fixing some of his efforts on the clothes. When Mika was pouting when he was instructed to sell all of the tickets by himself and Nazuna suddenly grabbing Shu’s hand so they could do it together, as a unit. _

_ It was one of the happiest moments of his youth really, how he honestly wished he could go back to that time where he could see his dear Nito smile genuinely but alas, life played such a cruel fate on them. _

And, he found himself snapping back to reality.

Shu was packing for his flight tomorrow and he was spacing out with the memories of the past. Right after talking with Mika, he was supposed to schedule a small meet up with Nazuna before he left but it was too late. Nazuna’s college classes also start tomorrow, so there’s no way that they would be able to talk before he leaves for France. Honestly, he regrets not properly interacting with him the day of graduation. Nazuna’s smile felt so genuine the moment he looked at him before he left, did his own pride get the best of him? Is that why he refused to talk to him? Shu thought of many questions that he had always wanted to ask his former “doll”.  _ How could he easily gather the courage to stand up once again right after that time? _

Something fell from the photobook he was holding, the male bent down to pick it up. Tears fell down from his eyes the moment he laid eyes on the picture that had fallen down. It was a picture of them three, as a trio celebrating their first successful performance. Shu looked at Nazuna’s beautiful smile in that picture, it looked like he had truly enjoyed performing with Valkyrie,  _ it was so perfect and genuine.  _ He carefully slid the picture back to the photobook and placed it at one of the bags he was going to bring to France. Grabbing his phone from his pocket as he let out a long sigh, he opened Nazuna’s contact and sent one message to him. 

**Nito, I’ll be leaving tomorrow.**

* * *

_ Stupid, Idiot, Stupid Itsuki. _

Those were the only words that Nazuna wanted to yell at Shu the moment he sees him. 

Good thing Mika told him when Shu's flight or else he wouldn’t have been able to make it due to his classes. Thank god, the first days weren’t exactly so much that they ended early, it gave him time to quickly commute to the airport to see him one last time before he leaves for France for a while. The moment he stepped into the airport, he was frantically rushing to find Shu. He looked up at the big television screen that displayed the flights that were departing and arriving. Ruby red eyes quickly scanned it, looking for the exact flight details of his former unit mate’s flight.  _ It looked like he had just barely made it just in time before he checks in.  _ Having difficulty looking for him due to his short figure, Nazuna tried his best to spot the familiar pink haired male that once was his unit leader, once a person that he was close to and someone who he wanted to call a friend again. Tired from all the running and trying to stand tall to look for him, he let out a sigh of relief as he saw Shu slowly walking to the departure area. Nazuna took a deep breath so he could call out to him.

_ “Itsuki!” _

Shu turned around, he started to tear up at the sight of Nazuna trying to reach him. A huge bucket of emotions suddenly just poured on him. He didn’t know how to react to the blond’s calling, the person that he once treated like an equal to was already right in front of him, ready to be approached but for some reason, Shu himself couldn’t. Just why did Nazuna decide to come chase after him? The person that he was afraid to face, the person that he tried reaching out to but can’t because of regret pulling him deep into the hole of the past was there right in front of him. The other male took in another deep breath before yelling out loud,  _ “Itsuki! Once you come back, I want us to become friends again! I want us to laugh, cry and sing together!”  _ Nazuna yelled as he bowed down.

He wanted to run towards him but he chose to go inside, running away from Nazuna one more time. 

* * *

At a cafe, Nazuna sighed at the thought of his failed attempt to talk to Shu once again. 

He watched Mika eat the cake that he ordered, dual toned eyes sparkled every time he took a bite. Honestly, Nazuna wished that he was as happy as him with his food. The crepe that he ordered didn’t even taste that well, must be the result of his depressed mood. Mika looked up at the blonde and decided to give him a piece of the cake and smiled, “Nazuna-nii not feelin’ well today?” he asked as he softly smiled. The other male proceeded to grab his fork to taste the cake that he had given, his eyes widened at the taste of it, certainly this helped him regain his appetite to finish off his crepe. “Y’know… Oshi-san last week was havin’ difficulty calling ya. He really wanted ta see ya but he just couldn’t bring himself ta too,” Mika sighed. 

“Itsuki did?” Nazuna’s eyebrows raised in disbelief. “I honestly thought he didn’t want to see me again after that…,” he sighed again as he attempted to taste his crepe again. Good thing it tasted a little bit better than the first time he had taken a bite of it. It’s probably because Mika's words caused an impact on him. “Mika-chin, do you know when he will come back? I want to try to reach him out again. When I saw him at the airport yesterday, I think I saw him teared up the moment I called out to him,” he asked.

  
  


Mika lifted his hand to grab a hold of Nazuna’s, “Because he actually did tear up. He told me that he heard ya,” he smiled, “It may not look like it but I swear, Oshi-san shares the same feelings as you. He wants to talk to you, laugh with you, sing with you. He’s not great at hiding it but I can reassure you, he wants to fix what broke in the past.” Nazuna closed his eyes, absorbing the warmth from his former unit member’s hand. It felt nostalgic. The warmth brought him back to the time Valkyrie as a trio would always hang out together. Where he was the happiest when he was with Shu. 

  
  


_ “We will call ourselves Valkyrie then! The ones who would project the beautiful masterpieces we produce~”  _

Nazuna smiled at the memory when he decided to give their unit a name. Of course, it was a really unexpected one seeing the main reason why he named Valkyrie, Valkyrie was the thought of relating Shu to the shield maidens of Norse mythology and later, he thought about what would be a nice match to the two of them. Mika tightened the grip on his hand, “I’ll try ta convince Oshi-san to talk to ya again… I know for sure he will.” 

* * *

On a video call with Shu, Mika tried his best to convince him to attempt to talk to Nazuna once again. The older male as listening quietly as his unit mate talked about the conversation that he had with his blond senior earlier and reassured him that Nazuna seriously wanted for them to start a new leaf now. Shu sighed, he was conflicted, afraid of what to do. Deep down inside, he knew that he needed to face this someday soon but he just couldn’t. How was he supposed to let go the bitter memories of the past with ease? Every single time that he sees Nazuna he couldn’t help it but fear that he would return to the person he used to be to him. Then on his screen, he saw Mika frowning sadly, it looked like he regretted telling this to him considering that he was still anxious about facing him again. The doll sighed, “I need to get goin’ now Oshi-san. It’s already gettin’ late and I need ta sleep early for school tomorrow,” Mika smiled as he waved at the screen. Shu waved back and ended the call but was still left with thoughts on how he should face Nazuna.

An idea then popped in his head. Valkyrie was going to have a live concert two months from now and he needed to write a new song for the two of them. What if he tried reaching out to Nazuna through music? That’s what idols are supposed to sing right? Singing songs that reach out to the hearts of their audience. Just for once, he would write this song, selfishly dedicating it for him, and him alone. Shu grabbed his notebook and started brainstorming for possible themes for their new song so that he can ask Leo for help later for instrumentals that might fit with their new song. It honestly took a while for him to think for a title. Before he had realized, it was already around 1 pm. He should be eating lunch right now. As he stood up from his chair, he saw a picture from Valkyrie’s first live with him and Nazuna and next to it was their repayment festival with Ra*bits. The moment he saw those pictures, he was finally able to come up with a proper theme for their new song.

_ “To the past, the doll that had taught me the feelings of love, even if I was too blind to see it. And to the future, that doll who learned how to be human again.” _ Shu wrote down in his notebook. He had finally come to terms with the conflicted feelings he was feeling towards Nazuna. The reason why he was scared to talk to him again, was because he had still hasn’t accepted deep inside that he had learned to be a free person once again and it was only Shu who was still chained to the past full of misery.

The song was given a name,  _ l’avenir.  _

**Even though you trust me, I’m a terrible person inside.**

Shu was back in Japan. It was surprising how nothing had changed right after he came back from France. There were some slips of speaking in French here and there but all in all, he really did miss the sights that his home country had to offer. Admittedly, he found it a pain when he was organizing the live concert. Back at Yumenosaki everything was so simple but now since they were professional idols there are a lot of things that they need to do before they perform on stage. Luckily enough, he had the help of Anzu.

He was thankful that he wasn’t at the same agency as Nazuna or else he would be struggling as he tried to prepare for Valkyrie’s comeback concert. Shu wasn’t ready to see him, even if he was trying to think of ways to properly face him right after the live since just a simple song of apology won’t be enough to mend his bonds with him. As soon as he received the finalized instrumental track from Leo, he went ahead and gave it to Mika for practice.

At the recording studio, he patiently waited for Mika to finish going through the lyrics of the song. Right after he did, the dual colored eyes male grinned at Shu. “Did ya write this with Nazuna-nii in mind Oshi-san?”the dual eyed colored male smirked. The puppetmaster’s face suddenly grew with a huge shade of red, ready to let out steam from embarrassment as he snatches out the musical sheets from Mika, earning a disappointed pout from him.

“Kagehira, you do not meddle in other people’s businesses,” Shu scolded as he looked at Mika. He then turned around to grab his sketchbook from his bag and threw it to the other male who was able to just barely catch it. The sketchbook had the design of the clothes that they were going to wear for the comeback lives and strangely enough, their new costume was somewhat similar to Nazuna’s old costume back when he was in Valkyrie, just slightly altered to fit their current theme as a duo. Mika’s eyes sparkled with joy, he saw this as a sign that Shu was actually planning to reach out to him. It was all clear, the song, the costume’s symbolism and the determination that he saw in his mentor’s eyes. After a moment of silence, Shu turned around to him, wanting to say something to his unit mate. “I will be honest for once. Can you listen to me?” 

_ Shu wanted to admit that he was a terrible person when he saw Nazuna perform with his newfound unit at the Tanabata festival. For the first time in forever, he saw his doll finally moving free from the strings that he had sewn on him from the very start to control him. The person who was once a doll suddenly became a rabbit that can hop freely to their heart’s content. He tried to hide his guilt by maintaining the prideful persona. Surprisingly enough, that worked. The guilt that he had compressed right after he saw them perform was suddenly gone.  _

_ However, why did he suddenly feel envious the moment he saw Nazuna confidently speaking through the microphone?  _

Shu spat out all of his struggles, concerns on approaching Nazuna to Mika. Mika quietly listened to his mentor rant about how much he wanted to see his dear Nito again. He wanted to change and didn’t want him from two years ago to appear again. Shu wanted to reconnect with Nazuna as the reformed person that he was. 

“Oshi-san, Nazuna-nii trusts ya.”

“I’m not sure myself if I deserve that trust, Kagehira.”

* * *

The day of the comeback concert, Nazuna found himself having difficulty to stay hidden from the crowd. He knew that there were still fans from the Valkyrie before and they would still want him back in the unit, so it was hard to stay hidden with him just casually wearing his clothes without the disguise. The concert venue was huge, it was more of a theater show rather than a concert for idols but it complimented Valkyrie’s elegant theme. As he was walking absentmindedly, he bumped into a much more taller person than him. Nazuna looked up in order to see who it was and he was very much relieved to see that it was just Rei. “Rei-chin! You’re here to watch them also?”

Rei giggled, “Well, of course. Itsuki-kun is one of my closest friends. The rest of the oddballs is also here too,” he grinned as he moved to the side to introduce the other 3 oddballs who were most likely buying their merch in order to support their fellow comrade. “What brings the little rabbit here?” 

“I received tickets from Itsuki… I was kind of hesitant to come here but in the end I did,” he replied, grabbing the small envelope from his pocket that had contained his tickets for the concert. He received this when he met up with Mika one time and according to him, there was something special that he had planned for him and begged him to consider coming. Suddenly the speakers instructed the audience to go inside of the venue already since the show will be starting in a few minutes. Rei invited Nazuna to come sit with them because guaranteed, they were at the front seats of the show. 

As they took their seats and waited for the concert to start, Nazuna was surprised to see Leo suddenly taking a seat next to him. The ginger waved his hand to the blond and smiled, “Nazu, you should listen closely once the show begins,” he grinned as he turned his gaze back to the stage. Confused, Nazuna also went back to looking at the stage as he waited for the show to start. Then, the lights went off as the sounds of violins started ringing across the theater. The first notes of the instrumental hit hard. He wasn’t expecting such a piece from Valkyrie. After the intense violin intro, the spotlight was now focused on Shu. Nazuna’s eyes widened as he observed the costume that he was wearing. It was similar to the costume that he wore in the past but only was altered to suit their current theme in general. He couldn’t believe his ears at the moment he heard Shu sing.

_ “Come now my sweet marionette, I shall free you from the chains that I have imposed on you.” _

_ “I’m sorry that I controlled your everything but I am no longer that kind of puppet master anymore.” _

_ “Hand in hand, we will discover what it is like to be ‘human.’”  _

_ “Our future is uncertain but we will certainly discover what true beauty is.” _

Shu saw Nazuna and suddenly stopped his movements but he was saved by Mika who gave him a wink and encouraged him to let out the confidence that he needed to show. The puppetmaster smirked as he saw his lovely doll who was now slowly becoming his equal having fun on stage, as a free person. Purple eyes locked at rose colored eyes as he continued to perform. 

He smiled because he knew his song reached Nazuna. 

**_Because The Future Exists._ **

Shu found himself outside of the live venue, looking at the night sky. The comeback live was a success and it was time for all of the audience to go home and for the staff to pack up. He wondered if it was enough to reach him. Deep down inside, he still needed to face him up front and talk to him. Maybe he will do it tomorrow when he finally finishes the remaining jobs that he needed to finish. It then suddenly occurred as to how this night sky felt so similar to the night sky during the Tanabata festival. Both events were similar in a way though, it was a come back for Valkyrie. Taking in the sight of the night sky one last time, he turned around only to see the person he was just thinking about just minutes ago right in front of him. 

Nazuna smiled at him and walked forward to him and this time, Shu didn't run away. The blond invited him for a hug, it looked like he was about to tear up because of how emotional this reunion has become. The taller male slowly walked forward and opened his arms in order to wrap them around his beloved Nito. Both of them stayed like that for a moment before pulling away but still held each other’s hands. They finally both have come to terms with each other without saying any words. It was the music that helped the reconnect once more. Nazuna looked up at Shu and grinned, “So, you won’t run away anymore?”

“I will face reality. And I will start by getting to know you once more,” Shu softly smiled. “Like you said before at the airport. I too, want to smile, laugh, cry and sing together again. But I’m scared Nito just what if… everything repeats again?” 

Then, a hand was placed on his cheeks. He looked at him, confused at first but later on understood what he was going to do. “Shu, the past doesn’t matter anymore. You understood it, now it’s time to let go. That’s why we learn things from the past because the future exists,” he hopefully said. The taller male then leaned in, silently asking if it was okay for him to do it. Nazuna nodded. Shu then kissed the top of his forehead and held his hands tighter. 

“That’s right. Our future exists.” 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Twitter : @treasureknights 
> 
> The ending is a little bit ambiguous since I didn't know if I were to write them as romantic or platonic, all I know is to write them finally reconciling.  
> This is probably set before the main story since Shu mentioned how he is slowly getting to know Nazuna again in the story.
> 
> Once again, I really hope you enjoyed this fic! It was fun projecting this song onto them.  
> (I actually had a written outline for this fic lol)


End file.
